Sharon Beekmann Ministries

Speak the Word Boldly: A Study of Acts

2011-09-02T12:20:00.004-06:00

God’s great plan of salvation continues to unfold as his Spirit-filled church takes the message of salvation to the ends of the earth. This fall we begin a study of the book of Acts. Its message is missional: The Wind of Grace inspires brave men and women to proclaim that Jesus Christ lived, died, and rose from the dead. God himself gathers people throughout the world and builds his Church. He uses people like you and me.

Beginnings are important! Think of the birth and early years of children or the beginning of a relationship. We soon learn that beginnings and early developments contain clues to the future. The same was true for the Church. Holy Spirit fire birthed the church at Pentecost and the events that followed were both glorious and difficult. In this study, we examine what the early church teaches us about being a follower of Christ today. We look at the role of the Holy Spirit and of Peter and Paul. We look at the process of reconciliation between Jew and Gentile and reaffirm that the Gospel is good news for all people! We imagine ourselves at Pentecost when: “After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly” (Acts 4:31). Yes, Lord, we want to speak the word boldly.

Come join us Sunday mornings at 9:15-10:15.

GracePoint Community Church
90 Orchard Rd.
Littleton, Colorado 80121
Phone: 303-798-6387

Believe and Be Free: A Study of Mark's Gospel

2010-09-04T11:28:00.004-06:00

The Gospel of Mark is the story about the God-Man Jesus as he travels with his disciples in Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem. The people ask, “Who is this man with such power and authority?” Mark responds by saying that he is the Christ, Messiah, Teacher, Son of Man, Son of David, and Son of God. The Gospel explains that Jesus is the suffering servant who dies and rises again in order to free us from our bondage to sin, Satan, and death—believe and be free!

Sundays at 9:15 am - January through May 2011
GracePoint Community Church
90 East Orchard Drive (Orchard and Broadway)
You may come on a drop-in basis
303-798-6387

What Is Astrology?

2010-05-28T09:15:00.004-06:00

The Chaldeans in southern Mesopotamia introduced astrology to the known world in the ancient near east, and Chaldean eventually became a synonym for astrologer (cf. Dan. 5:11). ANE astrologers believed that the earth was the center of the universe around which all heavenly bodies revolved on a single plane or ecliptic. The Chaldeans studied and charted the positions and patterns of movement of the stars, planets, moon, and sun, which they believed were gods and lesser deities that influenced human existence for good and evil. They divided the heavens into twelve sections called the Zodiac and identified each section or sign with a Babylonian deity and animal. The Romans and Greeks later renamed the signs to reflect their pantheons, for example, Venus (Aphrodite in Greek), Mars (Ares), and Mercury (Hermes). Modern astrologers use the Latin names for the signs of the Zodiac, such as Aries the ram, Taurus the bull, Scorpio the scorpion, and so forth.

Babylonian, Greek, Egyptian, and Roman astrologers charted the relationships of the heavenly bodies as they passed through signs of the Zodiac to determine their collective or synergistic influences on earth and human affairs. They used mathematical calculations to project future placements and relationships. Based on their calculations, astrologers believed, as they do today, that it was possible to predict the collective or synergistic effect of these heavenly bodies on personal and global affairs. Though ancient and modern astrologers called their practice a science, it is not a science in the modern sense, and the Bible condemns the practice as divination and star worship. The Israelites’ familiarity with and even participation in astrology was common enough for prophets to speak against it. The prophet Isaiah mocked Babylonian astrologers (Isa. 47:13), God forbade the worship of the stars or the starry hosts (Deut. 4:19; Zeph. 1:5), and Jeremiah commanded the Hebrews not to be terrified by patterns in the sky (Jer. 10:2). In the NT the wise men from the East who visited the infant Jesus might have been astrologers from the Persian Zoroastrian priestly caste (Matt. 2:1). King Herod, like other ANE Kings, honored the learned, wise Magi who studied the stars and divined the future. Because the wise men counseled the ruling authorities of their nation, their gods were deemed beneficent and of a higher nature than say itinerant diviners. God used their knowledge of the stars to lead the wise men to the Savior of the world. Scripture teaches that God does not inspire a practice he condemns, and Satan and his demons are the only alternative source of spiritual inspiration.

The Glory of Him

2010-05-18T16:06:00.006-06:00

Copy the following link to hear a sermon from Acts 2 that I preached at Littleton Christian Church in Littleton, Colorado May 16, 2010.

http://www.littletonchristian.com/avms.asp

Pointing People to Christ

2010-05-18T13:04:00.001-06:00

Summer 2010 Pastor Sharon Beekmann is teaching an adult Sunday school class on evangelism.

Where: GracePoint Community Church
90 Orchard Drive (Orchard and Broadway)
Littleton, Colorado
Pastor: Dr. Fred Lian
Phone: 303-798-6387

When: Sunday at 11 – noon, beginning May 23, 2010

During the summer, we will host an event entitled Conversations about Faith and invite people to discuss what they believe about spiritual matters and answer questions about the Christian faith. Please call the church if you would like to participate.

My Testimony

2009-03-25T15:10:00.003-06:00

“All the world’s a stage” opens a monologue in Shakespeare’s play As You Like It in which he uses metaphor with a touch of irony to describe the stages of a man’s life. On the world’s stage, the actor enters as an infant, exits, and reenters a little older, and so forth until he reaches the end “sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything.” In memorable plays, characters and plots lay bare the human condition. A protagonist battles an antagonist, and conflicts intensify to a climax and resolution that underscore the main point of the drama. The curtain closes. Off-stage, behind the scenes, workers labor with props and technical paraphernalia to make the production work onstage. But from a Christian perspective, real life dramas offstage are more significant than the ones onstage. For in real life, God is the primary Writer, Actor, and Director. His story is about the redemption of humanity and his Kingdom reign, which human beings enact in their life-stories on stage, not as mere role players, but as people who can freely choose to depend on God as they enact their roles. Behind the curtain, Satan and his minions are the supernatural, arch antagonists, who attempt to thwart God’s purposes and to disrupt his drama by attacking God’s good creation, particularly his image bearers. In this regard, the full story of life encompasses the backstage and onstage dramas, and in my life, this was and is an intensely personal reality.

Spring 1987, I walked into an inner city church where a young Presbyterian pastor greeted and ushered me into his jam-packed office. Smiling warmly, he said, “How can I help you?”

I smiled and repeated what my friend has told me to say, “I’m demon-possessed and want to know Jesus Christ.”

Smiling warmly, the pastor replied, “Of course I can help you, but first tell me about yourself.”

“I’m a marriage and family therapist and a single mother of an eleven-year-old boy. In my mid-thirties, shortly after his birth, I sensed emptiness in me. I had a good marriage, a successful practice, and close friends, so I concluded the lack was spiritual. I explored the ‘alternative spiritual expressions’ of the seventies.” I described my experiences with spiritualism, various divination and meditation practices, yoga, and the Eastern and Native American religions and then said, “January 1985, I felt fragile and isolated, and decided to stop communicating with spirits. The next morning I awoke to hissing and vile cursing in my mind and painful attacks to my body. Horrified, I realized that the evil that I had denied existed controlled my inner life and threatened to destroy me. I’ve survived for two and half years by refusing to act on their input and by constantly saying to myself that this isn’t me. My friend said that Jesus Christ is the superior spiritual Presence—I sense it’s true. I want to know him.”

The pastor took Steps to Peace with God from his shirt pocket and showed me a picture of a man standing on a ledge staring across a deep cavern. Then I saw Jesus Christ stretched across the cavern. Suddenly, evil spirits unleashed hatred of Jesus and in my mind’s eye, I saw a naked man writhing on a cross. They hissed Jesus’ name. The pastor asked, “Are you okay?”

“Yes, they regularly flood me with vile feelings, visions, and lies, which I ignore. Please, go on.”

The pastor said, “You become a Christian by confessing your sins and asking Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of your life. Are you ready to do that?”

Nodding, I read aloud, “Lord Jesus, I confess that I have sinned against you. Please forgive me. I want you to be Lord and Savior of my life. Amen.”

“Good! Let’s pray.” As he prayed, I immediately saw the man hanging limply on the cross. His skin was flayed and blood poured from puncture wounds. In my mind, a spirit taunted, “God killed his son. Why follow him?” I stilled—he just acknowledged God’s existence! The vision vanished. He taunted, “Want to see another sacrifice?” But it was too late, for I already knew the truth and so did he.

In a twinkling, the Holy Spirit filled my icy core and broke their control. Simultaneously, I knew that the Bible was God’s official word and that I was to give it and the Holy Spirit authority and credence over all else—my desires, thoughts, feelings and demonic input. I sobbed, “I’m free!” God had rescued me from the dominion of darkness and brought me into the Kingdom of the Son he loves (Col. 1:13).

Until that moment, I knew the arch antagonist and his evil script, but God mercifully opened the curtain wide and revealed himself. Instantly, I witnessed his power and authority to save and his ability and willingness to personally communicate with me. The invisible heavenly realm and God himself became as real as the trees we touch, the air we breathe, and the food we eat. Eventually, I learned that everything in the physical and spiritual universe comes from the Father through the Son Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit. From beginning to end, salvation comes from God. Yet, I had much to learn about God and the part I played in my transformation and fulfilling his purposes in the world.

I converted my hour of meditation and yoga to writing in my journal, reading Scripture, and praying. As I drew near to him with full assurance of faith (Heb. 10:22), God transformed me from the inside out and demonic attacks significantly lessened. I learned that Satan and his minions are bit players, albeit vicious ones, in God’s drama of bringing light to darkened souls. God in his wisdom and grace incrementally transforms us as we cling to him and boldly step onto his stage, where rather than enfeebled ends, we look forward to the day when we reign with the King of Glory.

2009-02-16T14:42:00.005-07:00

DOES "LIKE ATTRACT LIKE?"

A woman once asked what she could say to a friend with a serious illness who was trying to heal herself by meditating on positive spiritual energies. Her friend’s belief goes beyond the power of positive thinking, for it is based on what some claim is the principle that governs the spiritual realm, namely the law of attraction or “like attracts like.” Practically speaking, this means that as people focus or meditate on uplifting concepts such as love, peace and joy that they attract spiritual energies of a like nature which bring wholeness and harmony to body and soul. Conversely, if they dwell on fear, anger, and pessimism and allow negativity to consume them, they open the door to disease, conflict, and catastrophe. This means that when someone is faced with a debilitating, life-threatening disease, he or she must search for the cause, remain positive no matter how dire the news, and associate with upbeat, optimistic people, preferably ones who share their worldview. According to them, the bottom line is that people are not only responsible for how they respond, but for actual conditions in their lives.

How can this be? People generally agree that all human beings have a moral compass or a sense of right and wrong that transcends cultures. No one has to teach us that torturing children and animals is wrong. We’re repelled by the thought. Similarly, our deepest instincts tell us no human being should be held responsible for everything that happens to him or her—it’s too heavy a burden to bear and it’s not right. Say, a gentle man, who is a pillar in his community and a conscientious family man, sees the light turn green, looks both ways, and steps into the crosswalk. Suddenly, a car careens around the corner and hits him, shattering his legs. In addition to the physical, psychological, and interpersonal healing that must occur, should he search his soul for darkness that attracted the accident? Should he avoid emotional family members in order to associate with positive, upbeat people? And should the woman with a serious illness that leaves her isolated, fatigued, and pained also probe her soul for the wrong thinking and attitude that attracted the disease?

Our deepest instincts say no—it’s not fair. Children do not “attract” predators to molest them; citizens in third world countries do not “attract” malevolent dictators to ravage them; the mentally-ill, homeless poor do not “attract” abject poverty; and women ravaged by breast cancer have not invited the disease. Human beings are morally responsible for how they respond to conditions in their lives, but they cannot control what happens to them. The law of attraction is simply wrong and when sincerely and genuinely embraced, it crushes the human spirit—it is simply too much to bear.

The spiritual law of attraction is upside down from a Christian worldview. Christians understand that God created us as finite beings, which means that we cannot possess all knowledge or control all events in life. We understand that the problem of evil is real and that very bad things happen to good people. Yet, by faith we know that our Good Shepherd walks with us through the valley of the shadow of death—we do not fear evil (Ps. 23:4). We trust him to sustain, protect, and carry us through hard times. Jesus Christ said, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matt. 11:28-29). Indeed, his rest is profound. Jesus invites us to call his name when distressed, diseased, and overwhelmed. Our natural inclination is to shudder, to fall on guard, to retreat, and to figure it out ourselves. But he says, “Come to me,” and when he calls and we turn to him, his love is irresistible, for he is the most powerful and true spiritual attraction in heaven and earth.